Murdaugh Murders Podcast - TSP #65 - Leaked Medical Records Show Mica Francis’ Confusion Over Her Diagnosis + Bowen Turner Case Heads for First Appeal

Episode Date: September 5, 2024

Leaked medical records from Mica Francis’ in-patient and outpatient visits to mental health facilities were leaked to the public over the past week, and investigative journalists Mandy Matney and ...Liz Farrell are diving in. According to the records — some of which were sent directly to Luna Shark Media and others that were posted online by a TikToker sympathetic to JP Miller’s plight — Mica was confused about her diagnosis and its symptoms. At the same time, these records raise questions about how Mica was being treated and where clinicians were getting some of their information about her alleged behavior. In one report, the clinician notes that Mica recognized the need to “listen to her husband when he raises concerns.” Also on the show, one of the two appeals in the Bowen Turner case is set to be heard and it’s a big deal. Next week attorneys representing one of Bowen’s victims — whom he pleaded guilty to assaulting — will argue that the prosecution and defenses deprived her from her constitutional right to be present at Bowen’s plea hearing. How the court rules could have a lasting impact on the future of victims’ rights in South Carolina. We will broadcast the hearing LIVE for Luna Shark Premium members next Tuesday at 10 am ET... So mark your calendars...  Episode Resources: Chris Osher Article in The Denver Gazette Rachel Pickrel GoFundMe Listing David Miller’s JMSC Hearing - Nov 8, 2023 Bowen Turner DUI Dash Cam Video Robbie Harvey Interview - 31:45 Timestamp Jan 11, 2018 Email to Mica Francis Stay Tuned, Stay Pesky and Stay in the Sunlight...☀️ Join Luna Shark Premium today at Lunashark.Supercast.com. Premium Members also get access to searchable case files, written articles with documents, case photos, episode videos and exclusive live experiences with our hosts on lunasharkmedia.com all in one place. CLICK HERE to learn more: https://bit.ly/3BdUtOE. If you are in crisis, please call, text or chat with the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741. What We're Buying... Hungry Root - https://hungryroot.com/mandy to get 40% off your first delivery and get your free veggies.. Hungry Root is the easiest way to eat healthy. They send you fresh, high-quality groceries, simple, delicious recipes, and essential supplements. Task Rabbit - Use promo code "mandy" at https://www.taskrabbit.com/ for 15% off your task. Task Rabbit connects you with skilled Taskers to help with cleaning, moving, furniture assembly, home repairs, and more. Here's a link to some of our favorite things: https://amzn.to/4cJ0eVn And a special thank you to our other amazing sponsors: Microdose.com, PELOTON, and VUORI. Use promo code "MANDY" for a special offer! *** ALERT: If you ever notice audio errors in the pod, email info@lunasharkmedia.com and we'll send fun merch to the first listener that finds something that needs to be adjusted! *** For current & accurate updates: TrueSunlight.com facebook.com/TrueSunlightPodcast/ Instagram.com/TrueSunlightPod Twitter.com/mandymatney Twitter.com/elizfarrell youtube.com/@LunaSharkMedia tiktok.com/@lunasharkmedia Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:01:02 I don't know if we will ever understand the full scope of what Micah Francis endured in the six years leading up to her death. But recently leaked medical records reveal more troubling information about her diagnosis, about her medication, and about her treatment. And none of it looks good for JP. My name is Manny Matney. This is True Sunlight, a podcast exposing crime and corruption previously known as the Murdoch Murders Podcast. True Sunlight is a Lunashark production written with journalist Liz Farrell. Well, hello from the land of no consequences.
Starting point is 00:02:04 Before we get into other horrific stories involving the South Carolina justice system, I have to tell y'all, I have been so angry this week for Rachel Pickrell-Hawkins and what the Colorado justice system did to her and her children. This gut-wrenching story I am about to tell you comes from phenomenal reporting by Chris Oscher of the Denver Gazette. Check the link in the description and be sure to support his work. Rachel Pickrell Hawkins' ex-husband, former Aurora Police Sergeant Michael Hawkins, was recently charged with seven felony counts of sexual assault of a child by a person in a position
Starting point is 00:02:46 of trust. But guess which one of them was recently ordered to spend seven weekends in jail and which one of them is out on bond? Recently District Court Judge Daniel McDonald ordered Rachel to force her children to attend reunification therapy with their father, you know, the accused rapist, who also has a history of violence against women as a police officer. Michael Hawkins, the accused child rapist, is seeking custody of his two youngest sons, and Colorado court officials appear to be helping him with that endeavor. Now Rachel tried to take her children to this court ordered reunification therapy and she
Starting point is 00:03:30 obviously found it deeply disturbing. And she found it upsetting to her children who have already suffered enough. So like any good mother would, she objected. Then, Judge Daniel McDonald actually ordered Rachel to spend seven weekends in jail and made her pay for the reunification therapy. Of course, our system let an accused child rapist who happens to be a former cop out on a $50,000 bond. Of course, our system chose to force his children into this brainwashing reunification therapy. And of course, our system decided to punish the mother with jail time while the father is out free.
Starting point is 00:04:20 And I say our system because frankly, I am convinced that every state in the US has a problematic justice system if you look hard enough, especially when it comes to family courts. What is happening in Colorado is an American justice problem, and we should all be worried. How many more stories do we have to hear like this before we start holding these monsters and their enablers accountable? The worst part of this story is that our system favors dangerous men over loving mothers at the expense of children every single day, and we are not doing enough to change it.
Starting point is 00:05:01 What happened to Rachel could happen to anyone with the current system we have. Anger aside, I am chiefly concerned for the safety of Rachel and her children as all of us know how dangerous it is to stand up against a man on the verge of losing everything. They not only need a good lawyer to fight this and get accountability for what was done to Rachel and her children, but they need safety and protection. In the description, we provided a link to donate to Rachel and her family's GoFundMe. I am proud to say that Lunashark was able to donate to this family through our Merch
Starting point is 00:05:38 with a Mission campaign and I hope y'all can help too. While this story is incredibly disturbing, I want to tell y'all can help too. While this story is incredibly disturbing, I want to tell y'all that there is some really good news in this case aside from the $70,000 already raised for Rachel. Unlike in South Carolina where we report jaw-dropping horror stories of what our system does to women and how our lawmakers do absolutely nothing about it.
Starting point is 00:06:07 Lawmakers in Colorado are already taking action following the worldwide reaction to Rachel's story in the Denver Gazette this weekend. On Tuesday, Chris Oscher of the Denver Gazette reported that his story of what the justice system did to Rachel actually prompted lawmakers to take action. They wrote a petition to send to the Supreme Court and they organized a rally for Thursday. The petition says, quote, too many judges and magistrates continue to place children in the custody of abusers, order forced reunification therapy,
Starting point is 00:06:44 ignore credible evidence of abuse, void protection orders, and in some cases, send protective parents to jail while abusers are unaccountable. Wow, where were all of the South Carolina lawmakers demanding accountability for the elected officials involved in the Murdoch case? What about the Bowen
Starting point is 00:07:05 Turner case? Or J.P. Miller? How come our listeners in the UK and Australia are more aware of the gross injustices happening every day in South Carolina than our own lawmakers? The silence and inaction from our elected officials on the miscarriages of justice that we have exposed on this podcast alone speaks volumes. And it is evidence of why South Carolina just might have the worst justice system in the United States. Our layers of accountability are tainted entirely by corruption and our lawmakers have done nothing to fix that. In Colorado, lawmakers reacted to one horrifying story of injustice and they immediately did something about it.
Starting point is 00:07:55 In South Carolina, most of our lawmakers directly benefit from an injustice and corruption or they are too scared to speak out in fear of losing their positions. As Senator Katrina Shealy so brilliantly and blatantly told us on Cup of Justice, episode 95. In Colorado, judges are appointed by the governor, not legislators, which means there is less politicking happening when it comes to lawmakers and judges. That means there are less lawmakers who are biased towards certain judges because they helped with their appointment and they want to save face. That paves the way for accountability in Colorado. Instead of sweeping justice under the rug or hiding it there to come back later and
Starting point is 00:08:42 make a buck. Time and time again, we see the South Carolina good ol' boys successfully gaslighting the press so that they all pretend that the rigged system is just fine and all of them cling to the hope that those pesky and independent podcasters telling people the ugly truth of the South Carolina justice system will just go away. Well, let me just say this, we won't go away until we see accountability and real change. And we will keep screaming the truth from the rooftops until someone in power does something
Starting point is 00:09:19 to end the cycle of crime, corruption, and lack of accountability. We hope y'all keep screaming along with us and bugging your lawmakers until they cannot ignore us anymore. Speaking of the endless cycle of corruption in South Carolina, we've got to talk about Bowen Turner. Now, before we dive back into Micah's story and the baffling quote unquote evidence presented by her husband, J.P. Miller, and people apparently advocating for him,
Starting point is 00:09:50 we have two very important updates in the Bowen Turner case. The first update, victims were informed Wednesday morning by SEDC that thrice accused rapist Bowen Turner is set to be released from prison on October 31, 2024. And the second update that is separate but I'll explain. The SC Court of Appeals will hear the victim's argument in Bowen Turner's original case
Starting point is 00:10:18 that he got a sweetheart deal for back in 2022. The hearing could be a very big deal for victims' rights and we will talk about that in a minute. But as a reminder, we will broadcast that hearing live for Lunashark Premium members next Tuesday at 10am. Mark your calendars. Now, to explain these updates, a much needed refresher on this case. Turner is the thrice accused rapist who got a shocking good old boy deal in 2022 thanks to his lawyer, lawmaker, attorney Brad Hutto. Turner screwed up that deal almost immediately and was thrown in prison under the Useful Offenders Act for violating his parole.
Starting point is 00:11:01 He served over a year in prison before he was released last November, and by March, he was already back behind bars for a DUI crash in Florence County, South Carolina. Essentially, Turner is the poster boy, good old boys of South Carolina, and how their version of protecting their own ends up endangering the rest of us. This system has given Turner chance after chance
Starting point is 00:11:26 after chance, and here they are again, letting him off easy. We need everyone in South Carolina to remember Turner's face, remember everything that he is accused of, remember his alleged victims and what happened to their lives after they were allegedly assaulted,
Starting point is 00:11:43 and most importantly, we need y'all to remember the names of the public officials who let this man off easy. Bowen Turner is accused of raping three girls between 2018 and 2019 when he was in high school. Chloe Bess and Dallas Stoller both told a similar story of being violently raped in the woods by Bowen while they were at a party. They were both bullied horrifically in Orangeburg after they reported Bowen. Sadly, Dallas Stoller took her own life in 2021. Chloe moved out of the state. The third victim in the case remains anonymous.
Starting point is 00:12:23 We can't and won't ever talk about Bowen Turner without reminding you of what his victims went through. So charges were filed in Dallas and Chloe's cases in 2019, and Bowen eventually was released on house arrest with ankle monitoring. Years passed, and Bowen was caught violating the terms of his bond conditions more than 60 times. Most people would have been thrown in jail at that point, but not Bowen.
Starting point is 00:12:51 Bowen's family paid for a defense attorney who happens to moonlight as a state senator and his name is Brad Huddo, a man who claims to be a champion for women and who is up for re-election this year. Senator Huddo managed to turn this hearing for Turner's bond violations into a plea deal hearing for the rape cases. He somehow got Judge Markley Dennis and Prosecutor David Miller to agree to a sweetheart deal for Bowen where he was able to plead down to just one count of assault and he was given probation under the Useful Offenders Act. At the hearing, the court refused to allow survivor Chloe Bess' statement to be considered
Starting point is 00:13:34 before giving Turner's light sentence, which is primarily what the appeal hearing next week will be about. More on that in one moment. We never got answers about how exactly that sweetheart deal went down, but think about it. Chances are high that prosecutor David Miller, who has been trying to be a judge for years now, and thankfully was denied again this year.
Starting point is 00:13:59 Chances are high that he likely wanted to impress Senator Brad Hutto, who was one of the most powerful lawmakers in our state. Hutto carries major weight in the decision of who gets to become a judge here in South Carolina. Is it possible or even likely that Miller gave accused rapist Bowen Turner a sweetheart deal so that Hutto would advocate for his judgeship? Definitely. Because the alternative would be that all of these men just simply failed to hold a thrice accused rapist accountable because maybe they didn't care enough about women.
Starting point is 00:14:38 In a surprise to literally no one, it didn't take long after Bowen screwed up the sweetheart deal he was given. He violated his parole in less than a month and was back in jail for public disorderly conduct. And he reportedly threatened to bite a deputy during his arrest. Bowen was sent back to prison for over a year for that May 2022 incident and was released in November 2023. During that time that he was in prison, we continued to cover this story and listeners
Starting point is 00:15:11 from all over the world wrote to solicitor Bill Weeks to ask him to prosecute Dallas' rape case which he has kept open for all of this time. Well Bill Weeks refused to try Dallas' case and told her family that it wasn't worth the effort because they couldn't win it. He blamed Dallas' death for this, saying that there was no rape case without a victim to testify. Which, by the way, makes me wonder about Bill's stance on trying murder cases. Weeks is also running for re-election this year, by the way,
Starting point is 00:15:48 because the good old boys are essentially whack-a-mole's who never go away no matter how foolish they look. Now, in our opinion, David Miller, Bill Weeks, Brad Huddo, and Mark Lee Dennis all have blood on their hands for whatever Bowen Turner might do next. And we say that because remember the last time Bowen was released from prison not that long ago. In March 2024, Bowen was in a DUI crash, which was not only scary in the fact that he was already endangering the lives of others just a few months after his release, but it was horrifying to see what he did when he was arrested and how he treated the female officer who arrested him. He verbally abused her.
Starting point is 00:16:39 He called her a bitch and other words in between temper tantrums about how he's a white boy and shouldn't go to jail. I have to play this clip just to remind y'all how bad it was. Please ma'am. Ma'am, I promise you I ask you please ma'am. No ma'am, ma'am, ma'am, please. They are dealing, they're digging into my wrist ma'am Please, ma'am. Ma'am, please. Ma'am, please. Ma'am. Ma'am. Ma'am, please. Ma'am, please, ma'am. Ma'am, they're digging into my wrist, ma'am. Ma'am, please, ma'am.
Starting point is 00:17:17 Ma'am, please. Ma'am. Ma'am, what are you punishing me for? God damn, ma'am! I'm asking you, ma'am, what are you punishing me for? God damn, ma'am! I'm asking you, ma'am. Ma'am, please ma'am. Ma'am, look at my wrist. Well, no ma'am, I'm trying to... Call my mama. Call my mama, please. No, you haven't called her when I'm in the car. Call her when I'm in the car. Yeah, because you know you wrong.
Starting point is 00:17:45 Don't worry, I got your back, so we go get right. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Ma'am, please, ma'am. Ma'am, please, ma'am. Bowen was charged with DUI, public disorderly conduct, open container, not wearing a seatbelt, and resisting arrest. But of course, the system let him off easy again.
Starting point is 00:18:09 About three weeks after this terrifying incident where every single person in the South Carolina justice system should have been thanking their lucky stars that Bowen didn't hurt or kill anyone, Timmonsville Magistrate Judge Adon DeKam Hudson allowed Bowen to quietly plead guilty to four of those charges, including the DUI. And he sentenced Bowen to time served when the time that
Starting point is 00:18:35 he had served in jail following his arrest wasn't technically even serving for the charges that he was pleading to. We also found it odd that we couldn't get a clear answer on who his attorney was in that case. We found it odd that that particular magistrate judge was located 30 miles away from where Bowen crashed his truck in Florence. So why that judge? All of this was highly suspicious and highly frustrating. One charge remains pending for Bowen, resisting arrest, and a court date has not been set for that charge, according to online records. However, Bowen was sent back to prison for violating his parole,
Starting point is 00:19:18 and apparently that sentence will end on October 31, 2024. And we mean it when we say that we urge everyone, especially those around Orangeburg, Florence, and Columbia, to watch this man closely. While we for sure will be watching him closely. Now, for the hopeful news in this maddening tragedy, next week, the SC Court of Appeals will hear from victims' attorneys, Sarah Ford, who y'all have heard many times on this podcast, and Malia Bowers-Jefferson, who specializes in appellate work. Back in 2022, Ford filed an appeal
Starting point is 00:19:58 on behalf of the victims in Turner's case who were denied their right to be heard at sentencing, which Ford and Bowers-Jefferson are arguing is a violation of the victim's bill of rights. Specifically, Chloe Bess, the survivor who Turner pleaded guilty to assaulting at a party, wanted to speak and was not allowed. Sarah Ford told Lunashark reporter Beth Braden on Tuesday, quote, We are arguing against the state and defense who both allege we have no right to appeal. We survived the state's motion to dismiss.
Starting point is 00:20:32 The court denied that motion and scheduled us for argument. So this is a big deal. Y'all hear that? This is a big deal. And Tuesday's hearing could be a big step for victims' rights in South Carolina. On Tuesday, Ford and her team will be appealing the plea court's denial of her motion to enforce victims' rights, her rule to show cause against Ellery Bale Bonding Company, the company that allowed Turner to violate his bond more than 60 times,
Starting point is 00:21:04 and her petition for a writ of mandamus. So, we will be watching closely and we hope y'all join us at 10am Tuesday. Links will be sent via email and on your premium feed. Today we have part 3 of our look into what J.P. Miller's evidence in the probate case tells us about his marriage to Micah Francis and the story he wants everyone to believe about the weeks and months leading up to her death. But today is going to look a little different because instead of talking about the evidence
Starting point is 00:21:40 that was in the probate file, we're actually going to be talking about the evidence that wasn't in it, at least not the part that we can see. Namely, we're going to be talking about Micah's medical records, some of which were sent to us and some of which were posted online by other people. It's not clear whether these medical records were ever part of the probate filing because several exhibits do remain sealed. Also, I should mention that these all appear to be screenshots that have been cropped in various ways, so we're not always getting the full picture from each document. Anyway, you guys, these screenshots are illuminating and definitely not the way the
Starting point is 00:22:19 people posting them and maybe even JP Miller himself would have hoped. Which brings me to the obvious question, is JP behind these medical records getting posted? Unclear. But last week we told you briefly about how a TikTok user was posting seemingly random pages from Micah's medical file. It didn't stop with just a few. This TikTok user is someone who appears to have some sort of emotional connection to JP Miller, as well as personal experience with family members who suffer from mental illnesses. It definitely seems like this TikToker is intent on showing the world that JP is a misunderstood and grieving husband who suffered because he was married to a mentally ill woman. However, the more we look into
Starting point is 00:23:05 this case, the farther we get from understanding how anyone also looking at all of this could possibly see anything other than the bigger picture of the alleged abuse and why it's being alleged in the first place. In addition, a source, someone who contends that they're not JP or holding water for JP despite it seeming pretty obvious that they are, reached out to Lunashark Media and gave us three more random screenshots of Micah's alleged medical records with the instructions not to post them on social media. Oddly, these documents were already posted on the page of the TikTok user I just mentioned a little bit ago. So the JP public relations machine is running a little uneven. Anyway, because of HIPAA laws, it's impossible to verify
Starting point is 00:23:59 whether these documents are authentic. However, given the context and what we know is going on in Micah's life at the time that some of these clinician notes were written, they do appear to be real. For this episode, even though we believe the records to be authentic, we're going to sometimes refer to them as alleged records of Micah's because, like I said, we can't verify them. And it's weird. Usually when someone posts something like this, or sends something like this to the media, it's evidence that is vindicating to the person in question. Meaning, we totally would have expected these documents to be like, wow, okay, so JP was telling the truth all along. We've all been miss reading the situation. The world owes
Starting point is 00:24:46 him an apology. But no, the records don't do that. And yet it appears JP and his defenders think these are mic drop moments for them. Maybe they're not picking the right medical records to show us. So today we're going to talk about what the alleged records say, but keep in mind that if JP or someone on his team condoned these being released, and we don't know that they did, then it likely means he thinks that they're very helpful to him, which makes sense because they're just like everything else he released. They are shreds of evidence and also don't say what he seems to think they do. Which by the way, since our last episode we have had even more mental health professionals reach out to us to weigh in on
Starting point is 00:25:32 what they're hearing in our episodes. Details that don't seem to corroborate JP's repeated assertions that Micah was psychotic and suicidal. And a lot of people are doubting Micah had bipolar disorder at all based on what JP is showing us all. So thank you so much to all our listeners in the mental health field for helping us tell this story. Please feel free to contact us if there's anything you hear today
Starting point is 00:25:59 that you wanna shed light on. Today, we're going to talk about the first half of the records we have so far. And we're going to talk about the first half of the records we have so far, and we're going to talk about them in date order, right after this short break. As we gear up for another round of travel at the end of the summer, I am so glad I found Quince to take the stress
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Starting point is 00:27:30 Terms and conditions apply. Visit amex.ca slash business platinum. The first record we have from this new stash of evidence that doesn't appear to have been in the probate file is from February 19th, 2019. This is 14 months after Micah's mysterious December 2017 hospital stay, the one that occurred mid-December, according to information provided by JP in the probate file. Remember, this is when JP says that Micah was first diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. In the meantime, the evidence seems to point to her having had post-op complications, including some form of anesthesia-induced psychosis which typically resolves within hours of a patient waking up. As we told you in the past few episodes,
Starting point is 00:28:25 Micah had a breast augmentation on December 1st, 2017. And according to an interview that JP did with a TikToker earlier this summer, Micah had some complications from that surgery. One of her implants had hardened, which is a sign that she could have had a major infection from that surgery. It was around the same time that JP says Micah began acting manic.
Starting point is 00:28:50 The single piece of evidence JP has provided to show Micah's so-called mania is a bizarre text message that Micah appears to have sent to an associate of JP's in which she seems to be railing against having to keep their marriage secret while also preaching on the unseen powers of God and her fulfillment of the prophecies. Now we have a lot of questions about the December 2017 hospitalization and what became of it. Like we said, this is Micah's mental health origin story as told by JP. And it's the point when Micah's family says Micah's behavior health origin story, as told by JP. And it's the point when Micah's family says Micah's behavior began to change and they began to suspect that JP was behind it.
Starting point is 00:29:32 Allegedly, Micah was prescribed lithium and elansapine at the same time. We don't know if these drugs were prescribed to help stabilize her mood while she was in the hospital or as a result of an actual bipolar disorder diagnosis at that time. And the reason we say this is because mental health professionals have told us that the most suspicious thing about JP's version of Micah's mental health origin story is that she was diagnosed so quickly or appears to have been according to his account.
Starting point is 00:30:00 Not only does it take months and even years for a clinician to know whether a patient has bipolar disorder because time shows how the patient's highest and lowest moods manifest, there is yet to be any actual evidence that Myka had bouts of severe depression, which is the yin to mania's yang when it comes to bipolar disorder. It is a necessary symptom for the diagnosis. The question is this, did a Myrtle Beach doctor do Micah dirty by haphazardly diagnosing her as bipolar during that first hospital stay? If so, did that doctor base the diagnosis off information from Micah's pastor husband, the man of God? Or did JP see that the mood stabilizers that Micah had been prescribed for the post-op manic episode that was potentially related to a fever, severe infection, or reaction
Starting point is 00:30:54 to pain medications were also medications that could be used to treat bipolar disorder and schizophrenia and just decided that's what she had? Did he then pass that on to her new therapist and did that then get perpetuated by medical professionals with no one ever going back to the beginning? We'll talk a little bit more about this, but Michael was receiving outpatient care and some inpatient care from overburdened facilities funded by the South Carolina Department of Mental Health. Facilities where the caregivers might not have had the time to fully investigate or track her medical history.
Starting point is 00:31:29 In the TikTok interview, JP says that Micah's plastic surgeon met them at the ER and that this doctor said that Micah seemed like she was having a schizophrenic episode. Was that reckless comment enough for JP? Did he take that and run with it? We don't know the answer, but it's all worth asking and really, these are the questions to keep in mind as we continue to examine all the so-called evidence.
Starting point is 00:31:55 What we do know is that we have seen zero evidence of Micah showing any signs of bipolar disorder or schizophrenia before she was married to JP or before her breast augmentation surgery. Beyond that, there still haven't been any friends or anyone other than JP who have come forward to say that they witnessed Micah's illegitimate behavior in real life, her high highs or her low lows. But we have a lot of evidence of JP saying she was sick and we have a lot of notes to self about the patterns we are seeing. So from what we've been able to piece together, it looks like Micah might have gone to the ER on or around December 15, 2017, and was discharged sometime before December 22, 2017.
Starting point is 00:32:41 But it's hard to tell the timeline because the information and evidence JP has provided so far seems to willfully fuzz it all up. By December 22nd, 2017 though, we do know that JP was already dooming Micah to a lifetime of institutionalization and breaks from reality. They had their church wedding 9 days after JP sent her a five-part email in which he catastrophized her health and made himself out to be the victim of it. For a recap of that email, go back to episode 63 because where JP sees evidence that exonerates him as a bad husband, the rest of us are seeing a carefully crafted missive meant to overwhelm an emotionally handcuffed Micah. If JP is guilty of coercive control, then this would be the earliest written instance
Starting point is 00:33:30 of that on the public record. 11 days after their church wedding, JP wrote another email chastising Micah for going off her meds. For a recap of that, relisten to episode 64 from last week. The conclusion to both of those episodes is this in our opinions. 23-year-old Micah had a horrible start to her second marriage and instead of nursing Micah back to health, JP burdened her with his emotional fragility and insecurities and immediately labeled her as being an ungodly wife who wasn't living up to his standards. We know that JP wanted Micah to take lithium at that time, and that Micah was resistant
Starting point is 00:34:10 to that. We also know that JP gave Micah false information that he claimed to be for medical providers about what her life would be like living with bipolar disorder and that it meant she would be heavily dependent on him forever. Again, it all seems like signs of potential coercive control. And from where we sit, we are starting to question whether JP had motivations in terms of painting Micah as an ill woman, was he terrified she was going to leave him, and was this an attempt to chain her to him? That said, we don't know much about what the next year looked like in Micah's marriage after that January 11th 2018 email that we told you about last week. So this February 19th 2019 medical record
Starting point is 00:34:54 helps shed some light on that. The record was from an outpatient visit that Micah had at the Community Mental Health Center in Myrtle Beach. I'm going to have David read a few passages from it, but I want to note a few things first. One is that Micah's chief complaint is listed as, I've been doing real good. The clinician noted that Micah was in good spirits, that her mood was stable, and that she wasn't showing any signs of being manic. Two is that this alleged record mentions that she is there for bipolar disorder. Here's David with what the clinician wrote.
Starting point is 00:35:25 If you detect any judgy tone from David, that's because of how this report reads. Also, David is going to read these reports as if they were written in easily understandable English. So, we've spelled out all the abbreviations, but we did not correct the grammatical errors. We discussed symptoms and warning signs in order to prevent further decompensation again. But she said she never knew. This shows how poor concentration and attention span she has since I review it with her every appointment due to how severe and extreme her symptoms were. She recognized that she had a lot of delusional thoughts when she gets manic, and she needs
Starting point is 00:36:12 to listen to her husband when he raises concerns. Every time she comes with strange ideas for diets that she hears or read about in the internet. This time, she asked about starting a five days fasting once a month. We discussed how this could interfere with her lithium level and how dangerous it could be as she can become toxic. On the other hand, it could dilute the lithium and she can decompensate due to increased fluid intake.
Starting point is 00:36:48 So, interesting, right? I don't know if it's typical for clinician notes to sound snobby and judgmental, but it doesn't sound very clinical, right? It doesn't sound objective in the way you might expect a therapist's notes to read. And from what a therapist's source told us, the way this report was worded does have some red flags. For instance, the use of the personal pronoun I. That sticks out. The other thing is this. Micah was receiving her mental health care through state and county-funded facilities. Those hospitals and clinics tend to be overwhelmed with the number of patients they have.
Starting point is 00:37:30 So some of the anomalies that we are seeing could be attributed to that. But note, Micah's confusion about her own diagnosis and its supposed symptoms, and stick a pin in that because it comes up again. This clinician obviously saw Micah's comment that she never knew about the things the clinician was now telling her were actually signs of decompensation, which by the way is the word used when a person's diagnosed mental health condition worsens over time. But one, Micah was 25. Two, so what if she didn't remember? It's not clear when her last appointment was, so we don't know how frequently
Starting point is 00:38:11 she was going to a therapist. Was it every week? Was it every two weeks? Or was it every month for a med check? We also don't know how Micah viewed these sessions. Later she told a therapist she was only coming to see her because it was a requirement for getting the medication.
Starting point is 00:38:28 So here is the big question. Was Micah having trouble retaining information about signs of decompensation because she was being told one thing by her therapist and another thing by her husband? Was she being told that behaviors not being listed by her therapist were actually signs that she was worsening? Because you heard that part about Micah recognizing that she needs to listen to her husband when he raises concerns, right? It is a chilling line.
Starting point is 00:39:03 Which brings us to this. I wanna make sure we're all on the same page here because we've had a few angry men speak out and dismiss our coverage of this case as man-hating propaganda, which would be hilarious if it weren't so predictable. When we break down the evidence and offer our interpretations of what we're seeing in this case, we are doing so through two lenses that have been provided for us. One is that JP has been accused of coercively controlling Micah in their marriage. We're not trying to make that part of the conversation. It is the conversation. The second is that Micah believed and according to a recent interview by YouTuber Robbie Harvey
Starting point is 00:39:44 with a friend of Micah's who spent the day before her death with her, at least one doctor told Micah that she had been misdiagnosed. And that's no small thing. Micah's diagnosis is the cornerstone to believing that she killed herself because she had gone off her medication medication and not because of what was going on in her marriage. Okay, back to the listen to your husband when he raises concerns line.
Starting point is 00:40:12 In a healthy marriage and in a case where there's no question that a person had bipolar disorder, that line wouldn't cause automatic pause. But guess what? Big pause. But guess what? Big pause. In all his evidence so far, JP has demonstrated that he had a lot of ideas about what Micah would be like in the future, about what her diagnosis meant for her, and how it would present in their marriage. While she was still in the hospital in December 2017, he was already planning for a scenario in which she wouldn't believe what he was
Starting point is 00:40:45 telling her about her behavior. He was preparing her for a future where she'd challenge him and he was preparing her to view his narrative about her as the right one and her narrative about herself as the wrong one. But let's do this. Let's remove Micah and JP from all of this for a second. And let's talk about what life might look like for a woman who has a bipolar disorder diagnosis and a coercively controlling husband. The diagnosis becomes a tool of leverage, right?
Starting point is 00:41:20 It's something a husband who has coercive control issues could pull out at any time and use to course correct his wife's behavior. Behavior that is not pleasing to him and his fragile ego, such as his wife having moments of independent thought, or questioning her husband's rationale for certain decisions, or questioning his behavior or his treatment of her, or spending time with friends and family, etc. Also, a husband who is coercively controlling might not like to see his wife derive joy from anything other than him and the things that he finds interesting.
Starting point is 00:42:01 Her joy with and her joy about others, a joy that might manifest as curiosity about the world around her or give her a drive to learn more, are threats to a husband like that and as a result that joy can read as out-of-control behavior to the husband, something akin to mania maybe. In a marriage like the one I'm describing, again removing Micah and JP from this, a diagnosis like that then becomes the whip, right? You're showing signs of your mental illness. I know you think you're not, but remember when I told you about how this disease is going to make you think that I'm the crazy one and not telling you the truth? Well now is one of of those times you're acting very manic.
Starting point is 00:42:47 Your bipolar disorder is getting worse. You might have to be hospitalized again. So again, back to the clinicians' notes from February 2019. Was Micah getting mixed messages about what bipolar disorder looked like? And was she labeling her behavior as manic because that's what she was being told about it? Also, was the therapist learning about Mica's dietary concerns directly from Mica or was she learning about them from Mica's husband? Because why would she think this is strange? Name me one 25-year-old woman out there who doesn't talk about strange
Starting point is 00:43:26 dieting ideas and things like detoxing. Seriously. One. Name one. Not only are we a nation of disordered eating, Micah, based on the accusations against JP contained in the Micah's Law List, was in what seems like a marriage with a hyper-sexualized man. A man who, though he claimed not to care about Micah's medication-related weight gain, repeatedly showed signs that he very much did care. Such as, in his January 2018 email when he suggested her weight gain issue was fixable if only she exercised discipline and snacked on better foods like oatmeal. And such as in Micah's list where he was accused of telling Micah that if she didn't
Starting point is 00:44:11 perform for him sexually in the way he wanted, then it was in his right to seek that kind of sex outside of the marriage. In other words, at least from where we sit, it looks like Micah's appearance and maintaining it were critical to her self-esteem in this new marriage. And it looks like she could have felt some sort of implied pressure there. Okay, this record ends by noting that Micah was taking 300 milligrams of lithium three times a day around this time, which remember the screenshots of text JP included in his probate filing between him and a guy named Derek. They were from December 2022 after her hospital stay then. And in them, JP demonstrated just
Starting point is 00:44:52 how little he seemed to know about lithium. He seemed shocked that Micah was on 300 milligrams twice a day. And he was like, Whoa, that's a lot. And at least twice, this Derek person had to tell him, uh, no, that's actually just the starting dosage, JP. Three years earlier, it appears that JP's wife was on even more lithium than the dose that shocked him later. In addition, JP had told Derek that Micah was on 450 milligrams of lithium once a day for the past five years, which does not appear to be true, according to these alleged medical records anyway. So why did JP seem so certain that she was on 455 milligrams for five years?
Starting point is 00:45:37 It's an important question to ask when there are accusations that he was drugging her. At any rate, the record is cropped and it doesn't show the second medication Micah was on in February 2019, but in a subsequent record from months later, it appears she was also on 300 milligrams of Seroquel and she was supposed to take half a tab of that at night. The record ends by noting that Micah was taking her medications as prescribed
Starting point is 00:46:01 and that she denied having any side effects from them. She also denied having symptoms of depression and anxiety. She denied feeling suicidal or homicidal and she denied having hallucinations. Also, the clinician noted that her concentration and appetite were at normal levels, which is a little odd, right? When in her notes, she made such a big deal out of Micah not remembering the signs of decompensation and she literally wrote that this was a sign of Micah's poor concentration levels. But then in the same report she's also noting normal concentration. And we'll be right back. Transformers 1, Bowling Theater September 28. Ooh, this is denim for only $29.99.
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Starting point is 00:47:48 The next report is from 4 months later in June 2019. Now, again, we only have a few select reports and we were only given pieces of these alleged records so we are not sure about what has been left out and we also aren't sure about whoever provided these to JP's defenders, so we're not sure about what's been left out and why it was left out. But on June 11, 2019, Micah went for another follow-up visit. This one was again at the publicly funded Community Mental Health Center, and the same two clinicians from February are listed on this alleged record as well. Shadi Duchesne, who was a psychiatrist and Suzanne Haro, who was a psychiatric nurse.
Starting point is 00:48:33 So, Micah's chief complaint during this 2019 visit was and I quote, I am doing very well. The appointment was listed as a med check and a follow-up on her bipolar disorder. It again notes that she was in good spirit and that her mood was stable and that she wasn't showing any symptoms of manic behavior. The clinician notes that they again went over the symptoms and warning signs, quote, in order to prevent further decompensation, end quote. And then she writes, quote, this time she seems further decompensation, end quote. And then she writes, quote, this time she seems to be more in tune with her symptoms of bipolar disorder
Starting point is 00:49:11 and asked appropriate questions. So does that mean that Micah hadn't had an appointment for four months? It's hard to say. But note the use of the phrase further compensation again. Was this a sign that her alleged disorder had been worsening? And if so, was this something that the clinician actually observed? Or, and I'm going to go back to the listen to your husband part of the other report, was
Starting point is 00:49:37 the clinician being told things by JP? Or, here's where the allegations of coercive control come into play, was the clinician being told negative things about Micah's behavior by Micah. Again, had Micah been conditioned to believe what she might have been told about her conditions, actions, and personality? Listen, a lot of us, maybe most of us, have had friends in relationships that they haven't yet identified or accepted as bad or abusive. And so they regard any criticism lobbed at them by their partner as profound wisdom meant to build them up, which is how it's all being sold to them, as opposed to being a conscious
Starting point is 00:50:23 effort to break them down and make them more malleable. They then adopt that criticism as their own objective view of themselves. Remember, Micah was 15 years younger than JP. With that age gap often comes a power dynamic in which the older partner feels like their perspective carries more weight. So was Micah really exhibiting worsening symptoms of bipolar disorder? Or was that something being told and she passed it on to her clinician? Or was this just a part of the protocol to go over the signs? It's that word further that has tripped us up here.
Starting point is 00:51:03 Again, I have to ask that question because listen to this. Here is David with the clinicians' notes about Micah. She asked if she was bipolar 1 or 2 and what are delusions of grandeur? She wanted to know the difference between her bipolar disorder with psychotic symptoms and schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. This time she was not so focused on diets and weight gain. She is maintaining her weight. She said she is dealing with initial weight gain and inability to lose the weight by buying bigger size clothes.
Starting point is 00:51:46 Well, gee, I wonder why she was asking what delusions of grandeur were. Was someone telling her that her normal 25-year-old ebullience and expression of hopes and dreams were delusions of grandeur? And it's sort of curious that she didn't know which form of bipolar disorder she had. This is about 18 months after her alleged initial diagnosis. So is this a sign of that poor concentration that the clinician noted from the last medical record? Or is it a sign that she wasn't getting this information directly from the physician? Is it a sign that she didn't feel free to ask these types of questions
Starting point is 00:52:26 whenever she was allegedly diagnosed? Additionally, notice how she was asking about schizophrenia and the difference between it and bipolar disorder. This is the only time we see this word in the alleged medical records that were provided to us or otherwise published online. At no point in any of the clinician notes does the therapist or physician write that Myka is being treated for schizophrenia as JP has repeatedly claimed. And here we see that Myka is asking about the difference between the bipolar diagnosis she allegedly had and this other disorder, a disorder that is treated with some of the same types of medication that Myka had been prescribed. Was Micah asking because she had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, counter to what the alleged
Starting point is 00:53:09 records seem to be showing? Did she think she might have schizophrenia? Or was she being told she had it by someone not in the medical field? This report notes that Micah is still on 300 mg of lithium carbonate three times a day and half of a 300 milligram tablet of Seroquel at night. The clinician writes that Micah is sleeping well and is not experiencing any drug-induced movement or any involuntary facial movements, both of which are side effects to the
Starting point is 00:53:38 medications. She also notes that Micah doesn't have any suicidal or homicidal ideations and she has no plans for carrying out either. In fact, that part is written twice in these records. The clinician notes that Micah was taking her meds as prescribed and wasn't experiencing side effects or symptoms of depression or anxiety, nor any mania, nor was she having hallucinations. She was perfectly normal. And we imagine this is something JP would want out there. Evidence that when she was on her medication, Micah was happy and healthy. Okay, now we're going to fast forward to November 28th, 2022, the day Micah checked herself into Waccamaw Center for Mental Health. In episode 52,
Starting point is 00:54:22 we told you about everything that went down on November 16th, 2022, when Micah left JP and drove four hours to stay with her sister Sierra in Gaffney, South Carolina. We've also had Charlotte Korn, one of Micah's best friends on the show, to tell you about what was going on around that time in Micah's life. And we shared texts from that time up between JP and Micah that he cc'd Charlotte on to quote hold him accountable whatever that word meant to him. According to Charlotte and other sources Micah and JP had had a big blow up around this time and with hindsight we can now see that this was the moment when everything seemed to officially
Starting point is 00:55:07 shift in their marriage. While both of us would readily argue that Micah's marriage had serious problems from the very start, in November 2022, she was 11 months away from filing for divorce. Again, the big blowup, according to Charlotte and other sources, happened on November 15, 2022. A day when Micah and Charlotte went and did a cold plunge together, something Micah was using to help with her mental health. Later that night, JP had asked Micah a very stupid hypothetical question. If she had to hook up with a woman, who would it be? Micah apparently said no one, up with a woman, who would it be? Micah apparently said no one, but JP continued to press the issue. He wanted an answer, and so Micah finally gave in and said it would probably be Charlotte because she knew Charlotte would never tell anyone. That, according to Charlotte and other sources, is when JP went to a whole new level with his insecurities.
Starting point is 00:56:05 He became angry about Micah's friendship with Charlotte and began falsely accusing her of it being something more. Now, in November, 2022, JP allegedly was engaged in or had been engaged in at least one extramarital affair, according to court records. I don't wanna go too far down the rabbit hole with you today, but it's worth mentioning that a year before this, the quadriplegic husband of JP's alleged mistress had died alone under mysterious circumstances that resemble a potential
Starting point is 00:56:37 suicide. He was found at the bottom of his neighborhood pole strapped in his wheelchair. The death was rolled accidental, one implication being that this wheelchair malfunctioned in some way. But to this day, no civil action has been filed to that end. The statute of limitations actually runs out on Friday. According to court records, JP was openly cheating on Micah with this woman, and two weeks before this man's death, he had confronted JP to tell him to stay away from his wife. We're told that JP's alleged affair with this woman is one of the reasons Micah filed for divorce in October 2023.
Starting point is 00:57:12 Also happening around this same time. In early 2022, JP had petitioned the state to pardon him for a 1998 incident in which he pleaded guilty to high and aggravated assault of a woman who accused him of intentionally hitting her with his truck and driving with her on his hood before he hit the brakes so that she would fly off. JP wanted his right to own and carry guns back. And sure enough, the good old boys on the pardon panel asked very few questions and took his weepy, non-apologetic words in which he minimized his crime and acted like it was so harmless that he had forgotten about it as fact and allowed him to have his full rights restored.
Starting point is 00:57:51 Also, around this time, according to JP's ex-wife Allison, JP began giving sermons that were hostile to Micah. Sermons that mentioned her mental health and, according to her children, JP started posting post-it notes around their house with disparaging comments about Micah on them. According to court records, JP would tell his kids that Micah was crazy, but then he would turn around and then tell them, no, no, she's fine, creating confusion and fear with the children.
Starting point is 00:58:22 So that is the atmosphere Micah was living in around the same time. When she escaped JP and drove to Gaffney, JP began threatening her, her sister and her sister's family, to include her young nephew. He said he was driving there quote armed and ready, and that he did not care who he woke up in that house. In episode 52, we played the very rational, very calm 911 calls that Micah and her sister made to police that night. JP's threats had scared them and they asked to have officers on the scene in case JP, who kept saying he was getting close, arrived. According to text messages from that night, Micah begged JP to stop terrorizing her and her family.
Starting point is 00:59:06 And he, well, he wife-shamed her. Just so we can all remember what happened, here's David with a mashup of JP's messages from that night. anything for you. I'm only asking for the same respect. You can't treat someone like shit and then leave. You're supposed to work it out. Stay and do whatever it takes. Please don't be selfish this one time. I'm literally begging you to do the right thing. The godly thing, the only thing that will work. I'm asking you from the bottom of my heart. I need you. I want you. And I don't want to sleep alone, ever. But if you choose this, I will not beg you to come back. I won't put up with this again.
Starting point is 01:00:00 This is literally your last chance to make things right. I'm too old, too hurt. And you have put me through too much to continue letting you treat me like shit. While I pay all your bills and do whatever you want, I need you to act like a godly wife this one time and prioritize your marriage over your family, friends, and feelings. Charlotte is in this text so she can hold me accountable for this. What you've done in our marriage this time is totally unacceptable and no man would put
Starting point is 01:00:36 up with it. But I'm will to give you one more change. I'm asking one, that you repent. Two, hear my heart and pretend like you understand why I'm hurt. Three, come home now. If you don't do these things that will help me feel loved, safe, and prioritized, then our marriage is officially over and I cannot allow my heart to be put through this ever again. I love you. I'm willing to do whatever it
Starting point is 01:01:12 takes, but I will not be treated this way and defamed so horribly anymore. We used to be the best of friends and I'm shocked that you would throw all of that away. Maybe it's because you want to live with Charlotte. Why don't you tell her why you want to live with her? Or should I tell her? Go ahead, Charlotte. Ask Micah why she would want to badly stay with you. Please ask her. I'd love to hear how honest she is
Starting point is 01:01:49 Since she threw me under the bus today with my elders After everything else you've done By 9 a.m. There will be nothing left inside this house that has anything to do with you Notice that there is no mention of Micah's alleged bipolar disorder. No concern for her allegedly fragile mental health. Notice there is no sign of the 2017-2018 JP who is like, I will take care of you forever. I'm going to support groups to learn more about your disorder." In JP's rage, he seems to have forgotten the party line, that Micah was a very sick woman,
Starting point is 01:02:32 and that he was the only one who was trying to save her. Instead, it seems pretty clear that he regarded her as a huge disappointment to him, and that wasn't above punishing or threatening her for disobeying his wishes. He was not above flexing his economic or spiritual power over her. In addition to that drama, Micah was apparently spooked by JP's increasingly bizarre behavior, something his ex-wife also noticed according to court records. While Micah was in Gaffney and when she realized JP wasn't on his way there, she called police
Starting point is 01:03:12 in Myrtle Beach to do a welfare check on JP because he was allegedly making threats of ending his own life. So 12 days after all of that is when Micah was admitted to the hospital and there is a police report for that as well. Because of course there is. In the grand tradition of J.P. Miller's so-called evidence further confusing matters, when comparing the clinician notes to what we knew from sources and the corresponding police report, there are discrepancies and very frustrating characterizations about what was actually happening back in November 2022. So again, in episode 52, we told you about what went down outside of the hospital. The police
Starting point is 01:03:58 were called because Micah had locked herself in the bathroom of the lobby and wouldn't come out. Mica was reportedly weak and, according to the hospital staff, appeared to be under the influence of something. When police got there, Mica was seated in JP's Ram truck and he was attempting to leave the scene with her. According to the police report, Mica and her sister had driven to the hospital separately without JP. Our original understanding was that Micah's sister Anna had taken her there. According to the alleged medical records, Micah drove herself, which is again hard to
Starting point is 01:04:36 believe given the state that she was in. Police wrote that Micah's sister told them that JP wouldn't allow Micah to get the help that she needed from the hospital, that he was trying to stop Micah from getting admitted, that JP had brought Micah out to his truck and wouldn't release her. Police noted in their report that whenever they tried to ask Micah a question, JP would interrupt her and answer for her. So they separated her from JP to get to the bottom of what was going on and what she wanted. Micah's sister told the police that this was an ongoing issue with JP and Micah and
Starting point is 01:05:14 that Micah had tried to escape JP by driving to Gaffney. She told the police that while Micah was gone, JP had a mental breakdown and began threatening to kill himself. And she told the police that JP had been mentally abusing Micah for an extended period by, and take note of what I'm about to say, not letting her sleep, not letting her eat, and not letting her contact her family. When police separated JP from Micah, he became irate, according to the report, and began calling Lt. Heather Wilson with the Horry County Police Department. J.P. threatened the officers on the scene that they were going to be getting a call from her. Without J.P. and her immediate proximity,
Starting point is 01:05:57 Micah told EMT workers that she wanted to be admitted for a mental health evaluation. Okay, so that sets the scene. Now, we're going to hear about the incident from the alleged medical record. According to the record, which appears to have been written by psychiatric nurse Suzanne Haru, who is one of the two clinicians listed on both of the 2019 records we shared with you earlier, Micah came to the hospital sometime before noon for crisis intervention services. Haru notes that Micah was there with JP and her sister, who she incorrectly identifies
Starting point is 01:06:35 as Ashley. According to the alleged record, Micah had a flat affect and disorganized thoughts. It noted that Micah hadn't had any changes in her medical condition or substance use and that Micah reported that she hadn't had any suicidal thoughts nor was she planning on killing herself. The report also notes that Micah hadn't eaten or slept for several days but again that she had driven herself to the hospital followed by Anna and JP. According to the alleged record, Micah wasn't able to walk into the hospital and was carried in by JP. So that's weird, right? Did the clinician witness this? Because it does
Starting point is 01:07:15 not jibe with the police report or the accusation that JP was trying to keep Micah from getting help. It doesn't seem to jibe with police officers' interpretation of JP's behavior at all. The clinician noted that Micah had then locked herself in a bathroom and would not come out. That JP pounded on the bathroom door, and when Micah finally opened it, the clinician found Micah sitting on the floor staring.
Starting point is 01:07:42 The clinician, now referring to herself as quote, writer and not with a personal pronoun I like in earlier records, noted that Micah did not recognize her. The record or at least the part that we have doesn't note anything about what was going on outside. Here's David with what it does say. Husband said she hasn't been taking medication on a regular basis. He also reported she had not slept in four to five days.
Starting point is 01:08:12 Sister reported to writer that patient had driven to Gaffney, South Carolina on 11-16-22 to see her other sister. And they called police due to some concerning behavior that had been going on at her husband's residence. Police report was filed there, according to sister who lives in Gaffney, South Carolina. Husband wanted to transfer her to the hospital, but police said it was safer for ambulance to transfer. Patient was able to get out of her husband's car
Starting point is 01:08:46 and onto the stretcher after she spoke with this writer. Patient with ambulance and EMTs. Still confused and unable to respond to questions. Disoriented. The clinician noted that 911 had been called, but that's it. She also noted that Micah was called, but that's it. She also noted that Micah was exhibiting signs of mania, but also, quote, wasn't well physically due to not eating or sleeping for several days.
Starting point is 01:09:15 Which, duh, not eating and not sleeping for days sure would present as manic. So what was happening there, right? Did the clinician not know about the situation between JP and the police? Did she not know that JP was trying to take Micah away because he didn't want her to go to the hospital? She must have, right? She wrote that she had spoken to Micah when Micah was in the truck and that Micah got out of the truck after speaking with her.
Starting point is 01:09:43 If she saw that, then she likely would have seen police arguing with JP because he was interrupting Micah and trying to answer for her when they were asking her questions. If the clinician was there when Micah got out of the truck, then she likely would have seen them having to separate JP from Micah, right? How does what she wrote make any sense at all?
Starting point is 01:10:07 Was this whitewashing the situation? Or is the police report not an accurate depiction of what happened? JP was angry, according to police. He had twice called his friend, a member of the command staff, to try to stop police from intervening. And let's not forget about what happened while she was in the hospital. He went to a lawyer to have a healthcare power of attorney drawn up for Micah on the day that she was released.
Starting point is 01:10:37 She allegedly signed it and handed over all of her medical-related decisions to JP. He clearly wanted a way to ensure he wouldn't be told what to do next time when it came to Micah. So we can absolutely see for ourselves that the clinician's report isn't fully reliable, like every single piece of information that we get in this case. It would seem really pertinent that this patient in distress just had an extremely stressful event happen right there in the parking lot involving two key members of her support system.
Starting point is 01:11:15 And that is the tough part about this story. The more evidence we see, the more difficult it is to understand what actually happened to Micah. So what do these medical records, that again, were not included in JP's evidence, actually tell us? We know now that there are medical records signed by actual doctors listing Micah as bipolar, but we still don't know who initially diagnosed her and why they diagnosed her so
Starting point is 01:11:47 quickly before she even exhibited the full spectrum of symptoms. We know that doctors did prescribe mica lithium for bipolar disorder in 2019 and 2022. But again, we don't know what doctor prescribed her lithium initially. We don't know how they chose lithium of all bipolar medication and why JP was so demanding that she take her lithium instead of trying more modern medications with less side effects. We know from these records that JP was heavily involved in Micah's mental health appointments. And we know that her clinicians appeared to trust him, perhaps more than they trusted Micah.
Starting point is 01:12:32 But we don't know if that was just because he was a man who happened to be a preacher or if he specifically picked Micah's clinicians for control. We know that there are no records of Micah exhibiting symptoms of bipolar before she was married to JP. And maybe that is the most important fact of all of this. Micah's mental illness, according to JP, began with their marriage. Remember Micah's list, That long list of accusations that attorney Regina Ward compiled to depict what coercive control actually looks like and what Micah alleged JP did to her while
Starting point is 01:13:13 they were married? A couple of those accusations really stuck out to me as we were writing this episode. The first, depriving her of basic needs. It's said that JP would not let Mika sleep, keeping her up at night and pulling the covers off of her every time she dozed off. The second item is expressing her worthlessness. JP allegedly told Mika that she was lazy and mentally ill, that her breasts were too small, her family was ignorant, and that she wasn't a Christian woman as she questioned him or didn't submit to his dark secrets. And lastly, we have to remember this one, medical abuse. Micah's list alleges that JP quote unquote declared Micah bipolar, that he forced her
Starting point is 01:14:01 to take lithium, a prescription of his own, it says, that he monitored whether she complied with taking the pills and he would forcefully give her steroid and testosterone shots in her arms, thighs, and buttocks. It also alleges that JP would make her swallow pills and if he thought that she didn't take them, he would cut them up and put them in her food. Think about that for a minute. Even if a fraction of what Micah's list alleged was actually true, think about the mental toll that kind of abuse would have on a person, even without bipolar disorder.
Starting point is 01:14:39 Think about how frustrating it was for Micah to wake up one day after her surgery with her new husband, telling her she was bipolar now and that she will forever depend on him and on lithium. Think about the perfect storm that swirled around Micah. And again, how many people failed her? How many doctors didn't see what she saw? How many police officers dismissed her complaints while taking everything JP said seriously. Again, how many people chose to believe JP over Micah while she was alive.
Starting point is 01:15:16 So no, I don't believe that Micah's alleged bipolar disorder sentenced her to death on April 27th, 2024. More on that next week. While we were finishing up this episode, we received dozens of new records related to Micah that we are still vetting, but also we noticed they provide a whole different layer of complexity to this story. Buckle up, because this story is about to get even weirder. Stay tuned, stay pesky, and co-hosted by journalist Liz Farrell.
Starting point is 01:16:16 Learn more about our mission and membership at lunasharkmedia.com and eruptions provided by Luna and Joe Pesky. The justice system can be intimidating, but it doesn't have to be. We all want a drink from the same cup of justice, and it starts with learning about our legal system. My name is Mandy Matney, and together with journalist Liz Farrell and world renowned attorney Eric Bland,
Starting point is 01:16:44 we create the perfect trifecta of legal expertise, journalistic integrity, and a fire lit to expose the truth wherever it leads. We all encounter a part of our justice systems at one point, so why not get prepared while being entertained with tales from the newsroom and the courtroom? Cup of Justice has amazing special guests like Sheryl Crow, Vinnie Politan, Emily D. Baker, and other experts to share their take on the bright side of the truth. Lunashark Media invites you to gain knowledge,
Starting point is 01:17:15 insight, and tools to hold your own or hold public agencies accountable. Search for Cup of Justice wherever you get your podcast or visit cupofjusticepod.com.

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